Dedicated Servers and Chocolate Cake

Most internet users, including online business owners, don’t know what a “dedicated server” is, or why they might want to consider one for their online business. I didn’t either until recently.

What is a Dedicated Server?

A dedicated server is a web server“computer on the Internet that hosts websites, serving pages to viewers upon request.” – WiseGeek.com that is dedicated“given over to a particular purpose” – Mirriam-Webster.com to one person or business.

Why Consider a Dedicated Server?

A public server is only so big and has to be shared with hundreds, if not thousands, of other websites. Because the server is shared among so many other people the choices and space you’re allowed may be limited, but if you’ve got a dedicated server you’re only limited by the server itself.

Didn’t you say Chocolate Cake?

Oooh, yeah, chocolate cake!

To make this easier to understand, pretend your server is a ginormous chocolate cake. With fudge ganache filling. Mmmm!

Now pretend you’ve got to share that cake with a bunch of other websites.

You’ll have limits in the choices you’re allowed to make Chocolate or vanilla frosting? Sprinkles? Ice cream? and the size of the piece you can have. You’ll also need to worry about what everyone else is doing – if someone sneezes on their piece of cake yours could be contaminated too.

Eeeew!

Now pretend you’ve got that whole chocolate cake to yourself.

You can make all the rules! Chocolate frosting, sprinkles, ice cream, maraschino cherries and whipped cream; I want it all!

You’re only limited by what the cake or server can handle. You won’t have to share it unless you want to and you won’t have to worry about someone else coming along and messing it up with their boogers.

It’s yours, yours, all yours!

Do I Need a Dedicated Server?

Only YOU know if you need a dedicated server or not, but here are some things to think about…

Is your website bogging down because the server can’t keep up with your traffic?

Do you have a lot of photos or files and are running out of disk space?

Are you a control freak who wants to have exclusive control of your server?

Would you like an added level of security protecting your website?

Do you want access to as much bandwidth as you need without sharing with other websites?

Would you like to add a forum or shopping cart database to your website?

Are you planning for your business to grow?

If you answered “Yes!” to any of these questions you might want to consider a dedicated server. The great thing is that if you don’t have one now you’re not behind in the game; it’s never to late to switch to a dedicated server.

And while you’re thinking about it, have another piece of chocolate cake.

As someone who works in the web world, I wouldn’t recommend a dedicated server to the average blogger. It would be an unnecessary expense. If you end up with an active community or store on your site, then you might want to think about it. For most small sites, even small company sites, a shared server is fine.
But we can all enjoy the chocolate cake.